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Wines and Ciders

I'm not much of an alcohol drinker. My partner and I are teetotals for the most part, although we don't abstain completely. We both enjoy the occasional cocktail or glass of wine- especially mead, which we both enjoy. I don't drink very much alcohol,...

Sections

Wine

Hard Cider

Mead

Spirits

Brewing Equipment and Ingredients

Glasses and Accessories

Wine

Red, white, pink, whatever- wine is one of those universally beloved luxuries that the whole world seems to enjoy. I like sweet wines, preferably with loads of fruit character.

Easily my favorite wine. Top of the pile. It isn't the most expensive, to be sure, but it's incredible in terms of flavor. Sweet, citrusy, fresh and zesty. It reminds me of lime and fresh honeydew melons.

NEW | 2023 Nova 7

My in-laws are Cabernet people. You can't go to a dinner party with them without a decanter running- and the sight of my father in-law dumping ice cubes into a glass of red wine will never not startle me. To each their own! I prefer a sweeter wine my...

Chateau Beau-Site Haut-Vignoble Saint-Estèphe - 2015

If you're not much of a wine drinker and don't know what your tastes are, there's no better way to find out than by trying some. Buying a bulk collection of curated wines can be really fun, especially if you're planning a dinner party with guests. So...

Holiday Case Special: 15 Bottles of International Wine - 750 ml Bottles

You had me at chocolate. Seriously- the thing about wine is that half the battle is figuring out what the tasting notes are. When I trained as a barista, I was taught that different blends of coffee pairs well with different kinds of food. Wine is no...

Bogle Vineyards Essential Red 2021 - 750 ML

When I see this bottle on the shelf, I think of strawberry and black currants. I remember sneaking a glass from my parents when I was visiting—I couldn't sleep, and even though it was the middle of the night, I decided I'd enjoy a miniature spa night...

Radius Red Blend, 2020

Hard Cider

Here in the Maritimes, I'm surrounded by apples. There are orchards everywhere- so many that when my partner and I started planning our wedding, it was only natural that we started our venue search with the nearby orchards! Nothing is better than mul...

Angry Orchard hard cider is fantastic. It's crisp and refreshing, perfect for sipping during the heat of the summer. It's one of my go-to brands for when I want to bring a drink to a party!

Angry Orchard Crisp Hard Apple Cider

Growers is a great Canadian cider brand. I personally can't pick a favorite between their honeycrisp or granny smith ciders- they're both fantastic. They're about as strong as your average beer, and so bright and sweet that you hardly notice you're d...

Growers Granny Smith Apple Cider

Mead

One of my more involved hobbies involves breaking out the carboys and filling a stock pot full of honey. I love mead. I love drinking it (in moderation, a glass or two a year) and I love making it! It's a delightfully simple wine on its face, sweet o...

If you've never tried mead before and you aren't sure if you'd like it, I recommend giving Chaucer's a try. It has a nice clean flavor profile, not overpowering, but it uses a nice blend of different kinds of honey to add complexity to the taste. It ...

Bargetto Winery - CHAUCER'S MEAD WITH SPICE BAG 750ML

Vikings Blood mead is traditionally a fruity, sweet drink that packs a punch. It makes for a great dessert wine, and it's a common favorite for a reason.

Dansk Mjod Viking Blod Mead

This brand tends to use hops in their mead, which isn't typical of most modern meads. It lends their mead a little bit of bitterness and cuts the hefty sweetness that a lot of meads have. If you like a hoppy brew, it's worth a try!

Dansk Mjod Vikingerness Mead

Spirits

Gin and rum are my personal favorites, if I'm going for hard alcohol. I love the fresh pine and citrus of a good gin, and the sweetness of a strong spiced rum can't be beat.

Devil's Keep is honestly my favorite brand of gin. It's delicious, sweet, rich with citrus and juniper flavors. Mixed with gingerale or sprite, it's spectacular.

Gin - 750ml

I'm a pretty basic kinda gal for my alcohol. A simple rum and coke works just fine for me, especially if the rum is sweet, spicy and mellow. This is all of the above. Nothing fancy, just all around delightful.

George Ocean Spiced Rum

Brewing Equipment and Ingredients

I love brewing my own mead. I grew up around hobby wine and beer brewers, so it was only natural that when I came into my teens I would start learning the craft myself. I brewed my first batch on my own when I turned 19 (legal drinking age in my prov...

If you're interested in learning how to make your own wine, start with a kit. Trust me. I did it the hard way and I'm lucky it went as well as it did. A kit gets you the basic equipment and sanitation stuff you need to try a starter batch, and that l...

Master Vintner® Wine Making Starter Kit

For your first batch of mead, you're going to want to stick with wildflower honey. Different kinds of honey have different flavor, depending on the flowers that the bees had access to. I love a good orange blossom or pumpkin honey, but they overpower...

Monarch's Choice 5 lb. Organic Wildflower Honey

If you're making wine, you're going to need bottles. The kind of bottles and stoppers you use are very important; a perfect seal is needed to keep your wine from turning to vinegar, and the color of the glass actually matters when aging wine for good...

750ml Bottle - Glass Green Bordeaux Empty Wine Bottle - Case of 12

The best thing you can do when you're learning to brew alcohol is to learn about yeast. There's the practical, safety aspects of bottle sealing and sanitation, of course- but if you use the wrong yeast, you'll get everything from failed fermentation ...

Mead Yeast Chart

If you plan to do any brewing, sanitizing your equipment is absolutely essential. The only bacterial growth you want is the yeast that you purposefully pitch into the must. Sanitize. Everything. Literally everything.

Star San by Five Star

Glasses and Accessories

There's a lot that goes along with drinking a fine wine. There's the glasses, the stoppers, the bottle openers, the decanters- all of the fixings for fancy wine-tastings!

I've always been told that the glass matters a great deal for drinking wine. Shape, height, width, etc. Apparently it's all super important. I don't know the ins and outs, but I've never had a problem with my random assortment of glasses that I use f...

Viski - Crystal Coupe Glass 2pk

I really love the shape of these glasses. The way they curve from the base, up into a graceful narrow neck- I just love the way they fit into your hand.

Glencairn Whisky Glasses - 4pk

There's nothing cooler than having a personalized glass with an etched name, logo or phrase. These make outstanding gift ideas- I'm considering getting one for my father with our family crest etched into the side! He recently quit drinking alcohol, b...

Etching